When Kennedy Place was unveiled this fall, students had expectations as high as the building’s 11 floors. Instead, many found a high price tag, a small room and a big disappointment.
At $4,000 per semester for a single room, Kennedy Place replaced Straz Hall as the most expensive spot to live on campus. Despite the astronomical price, the $15.6 million dorm has gotten anything but stellar reviews.
Besides its high cost, students have complained about maintenance, security and small room sizes. Some students said they felt deceived about Kennedy Place’s amenities and are hard pressed to find space to have extra furniture or even a few friends in their rooms.
“I live in one of the few doubles, and the ‘common room’ is non-existent. There is no room for the smallest chair or a TV,” said Kyle Merritt, a junior. Merritt is far from the only resident vocally frustrated with size of the rooms in Kennedy.
Rori Miller, a senior, feels imprisoned in her room.
“We thought we were getting apartment-style living and instead found ourselves in a state of disbelief at the sight of our concrete cells.”
In fact, some of the rooms in Kennedy Place are so small that the only way to fit furniture into the room is by lofting the bed and putting the desk and drawers underneath it.
Despite the large number of residents complaining about the building, only six elected to move out of Kennedy Place during room change, according to Res Life. This number seems smaller than expected, especially after the circulation of a rumor that there was a lengthy wait list to get out.
While the majority of the residents are displeased with the dorm, their anger stems more so from the price and the feeling of deception many were left with rather than the small room space.
The description available on UT’s website promises students a studio apartment with private bedroom, dedicated kitchen and bathroom.
“I was a little shocked when I first moved in,” said UT student Rachael Lawson. “From the description it sounded like we were each going to have a studio apartment, which to me means spacious with good utilities.”
According to a UT press release, each of Kennedy Place’s 122 single and 30 double studio apartments would each have its own kitchen and bathroom.
“We were not given any square footage or realistic floor plans as to what the dorm would look like,” said Veronica Echaniz, a senior.
While Res Life says students had a chance to access blueprints, most only saw a blueprint without dimensions shown during room selection.
“Oh my goodness, Kennedy Place was totally not what I expected. It’s worse,” said Mary Edwards. In the dorm’s description, UT said that each room had a
“dedicated kitchen,” which students soon discovered was a miniature sink, two burners and a fridge.
Jessie Hsu, a senior, said, “I was expecting the kitchen would have an oven, and the refrigerator would at least be full size.” Not only are there no ovens in the rooms, there isn’t one anywhere in the dorm (most other dorms have one).
While the residents at Kennedy Place understand that UT is continuing to grow and has imperative need for housing space, they feel it is no excuse for what seems to be a rushed and perhaps even slipshod construction.
The need for on-campus housing was even more pronounced by the fact that a global e-mail was sent out just before school started, offering students money to move off campus. Jackie Donoghue, a junior, received a check this semester for $1,750 for moving out of Straz Hall and into an off-campus home she shares with another UT student. She’ll get another check for the same amount next semester.
Res Life director Krystal Schofield said the price is justified.
“We believe that the cost is a fair one.”
As students look to find the residence with the best value, the question remains: What will UT do to make Kennedy more appealing to future students? Res Life has no concerns about finding tenants for Kennedy in the coming years.
However, some students are already seeking other living arrangements for next year, if not sooner.
“If I had a choice, I would rather live off campus. I’m sure you can find an awesome place on Bayshore for the price you pay at Kennedy,” said Adrian Canillo, a junior.
“We are paying four-grand a semester, and my roommate and I can’t even fit in the common room at the same time,” noted UT basketball player DeVaughn Gow.
The rise in expense for UT’s on-campus housing has driven many of its students to other housing options. Some UT students have even moved toward USF. Boardwalk Apartment Complex, which has rented to UT students before, now offers a movie theater, basketball courts, a pool, utilities and HBO all for the price of $510 a month. Billy Grewe, a USF senior, lives at Avalon Heights apartment complex, where he has a bathroom, a mini-fridge, a microwave and a sink area. He shares a full-sized kitchen and living room space. He pays $515 a month, which includes a community pool, a hot tub, gym, and business center, utilities, phone, internet and cable. With options like this, it comes as little surprise that out of 15 residents interviewed, only one said that they would live in Kennedy Place next year for the current price.
Maintenance issues are also on the long list of student complaints about Kennedy, with some stemming from the fact that the building was just finished over the summer.
When senior Rachael Lawson moved into her double unit on Kennedy’s tenth floor, she discovered that her sink’s pipe had not been connected properly. Upon turning on the sink, water ran onto the floor underneath it.
Another student discovered her hot and cold faucets were backwards in her shower. Originally the student did not think she had hot water but then realized that turning the cold faucet produced warm water.
Many residents at Kennedy Place are puzzled over who to call for help on maintenance issues. Since the Kennedy Place property isn’t owned by the university, some residents are under the impression that a separate company is in charge of the maintenance. This however, is untrue. Sodexho, the company in charge of food services and housekeeping, also runs maintenance for UT, and that includes Kennedy Place. Residents can call the main university number or Sodexho directly for maintenance issues.
Resident Assistant Alma Loya oversees the tenth and eleventh floors of Kennedy. “Complaints